My 22 Favorite Bands, as of Dec. 12, 2005

This is an ever-evolving topic that never seems to get old—or complete. I have a hard time adding some bands to my list, because I tend to go for longevity and "legacy" over anything else, but my fall concert tour cemented the status of some bands that were starting to wilt. And, I'm so into Johnny Cash right now, just putting him on the list was reason enough to update. (I reserve the right to forget some, no matter how hard I try.) Here goes …

THE BEST
1. U2—The concerts cemented their status at the top. The live show wasn't as good as No. 2's, but nobody's are.
2. Pearl Jam—Philly was incredible, but I'm still nervous about the next record.
3. Led Zeppelin—I listened to the radio on Saturday for the first time in I don't know how long, and for some reason heard three Zep songs. Yep, I still knew the words to all three.
4. Bruce Springsteen—Great year for The Boss. I wish I could have gotten to more than one show, especially on the last leg when he really started digging into the back catalog, but those tix were steep.
5. The White Stripes—Their performance on "The Daily Show" was great; the "Conan" appearance sucked. Pretty much sums up how I feel about "Get Behind Me Satan."
6. Dashboard Confessional—I'm really curious to find out what the next album is like. I wonder how long Chris Carrabba can hang on to his older songs now that he's hitting his 30s.
7. Wilco—Jeff Tweedy solidified his status on this list all by himself in November.
8. PJ Harvey—Unfortunately, I don’t think there’s any way she can ever surpass “Stories.”
9. Johnny Cash—Rising like a rocket ship. What have I been doing all this time?

THE REST (these are in no particular order)
10. Pink Floyd
11. Ryan Adams
12. Smashing Pumpkins
13. Ramones
14. Franz Ferdinand
15. The Who
16. Otis Redding/Al Green
18. Coldplay
19. Sleater-Kinney
20. Flogging Molly
21. Uncle Tupelo
22. Fall Out Boy

FORMER TOP 20 MEMBERS THAT WILL ALWAYS HAVE A PLACE IN MY PLAYLIST
Alkaline Trio
At the Drive-In
The Beatles
Cake
Collective Soul
Dave Matthews Band
Foo Fighters
Metallica
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers
Rage Against the Machine
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Saves the Day
Soundgarden
Stone Temple Pilots
The Tragically Hip
Paul Westerberg

And then there are those staples that don’t deserve a spot on the list but I just couldn’t live without. It’s more like I acknowledge how great they are and love their music, but it doesn’t reach out and grab me the way it does others.

The Clash
The Doors
Bob Dylan
Fugazi
Marvin Gaye
Green Day
Nirvana
The Rolling Stones
The Sex Pistols
Neil Young